title: [Hepatitis e antibodies in blood donors, hemodialysis patients and in normal people].
abstract: A substantial proportion of cases of enterically transmitted acute viral hepatitis occurring in young to middle-aged adults in Asia and the Indian subcontinent is caused by the hepatitis E virus (HEV). It is transmitted mainly by contaminated drinking water and is associated with a high mortality rate (up to 20%) in pregnant women. Chronic forms of hepatitis E are not known. An enzyme immunoassay (EIA) for the detection of IgG antibodies to hepatitis E (Abbott), based on two recombinant HEV antigens, yielded repeatedly reactive results in 5 of 250 (2%) blood donors, 13 of 543 (2.4%) healthy employees from four firms in Hamburg, and in 5 of 150 (3.3%) hemodialysis patients. Supplemental testing by two synthetic peptide EIAs and by Western Blot confirmed positive results in 22/23 samples. None of the samples was IgM antibody-positive. Since no transfusion-transmitted cases of hepatitis E have been observed so far, HEV assays seem to be more useful for differential diagnosis of viral hepatitis than for the screening of donors in the blood bank setting.
authors.affiliation: Abteilung für Transfusionsmedizin und Transplantationsimmunologie, Universitäts-Krankenhaus Eppendorf, Hamburg, Deutschland.
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Knödler
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hiller
authors.forename: C C
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: Löliger
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Kühnl
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000914:Antibodies, Viral / Q000097:blood*; D001208:Asia / Q000453:epidemiology; D001782:Blood Donors; D005260:Female; D016751:Hepatitis E / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control* / Q000635:transmission; D016752:Hepatitis E virus / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D006801:Humans; D007194:India / Q000453:epidemiology; D008875:Middle Aged; D011247:Pregnancy; D012016:Reference Values; D006435:Renal Dialysis
chemical_list: D000914:Antibodies, Viral
vernacular_title: Hepatitis-E-Antikörper bei Blutspendern, Hämodialysepatienten und in der Normalbevölkerung.